Sports Coaching with Performance Sport with Foundation Year

This course includes an additional year as a foundation year. This begins at the start of the course and will help prepare you for full time undergraduate study. The foundation year is intended for those who didn't meet the entry requirements for the course or want to take an additional year to prepare for study. At the end you will still receive the BSc award.

Why study at Buckinghamshire New University?
By studying this course with us, you’ll have the opportunity to look at athlete development and analysis when spending time in our state-of-the-art Human Performance Laboratory. As well as the degree qualification, you’ll also have the opportunity to take UKCC coaching certifications and Sports Coach UK awards.

Here at BNU, we always encourage our students to get as much industry experience as possible. Our strong links with industry partners will enable you to seek volunteering and paid work opportunities. This, along with our practical approach to the course, will give you a deeper understanding of the professional environment and type of career that awaits you beyond graduation.

We also pride ourselves on the amazing opportunities we offer our students to start forming their own networks within industry. This means not only will you have access to first-hand accounts from those on the ‘front-line’ while you study, but you’ll also make priceless connections for when the time comes to jump into your first job.

We work with some incredible partners like the National Sports Centre at Bisham Abbey which is home to several governing bodies in sport, Leap (County Sports Partnership), Stoke Mandeville Hospital (the famous birthplace of the Paralympics), Reading Ladies Football Club and the National League basketball team, London United, to name just a few.

What will I study?
Our pathway combines both a theoretical and practical approach to teaching to suit your needs and objectives. We will learn how to engage with the community sport and coaching industries in a variety of capacities both in the community and in the teaching environment. This pathway introduces focus on the PE curriculum and pedagogies, which will offer a route towards Qualified Teacher Status via a full-time Postgraduate Certificate of Education or School-Centred Initial Teacher Training.

Career prospects
Throughout your time with us we’ll support you on the route to your chosen career. We’ll help you to develop crucial skills, encouraging you to become enterprising, employable and good leaders. We also help you find employment after graduation. Have a look at our Careers and Employability pages to find out more.

Many of our graduates go on to have careers as a PE Teacher, work in education or sports coaching and contribute greatly to society using the skills they gained on this pathway. Some students also enter community work or pursue other sports-related careers after graduation, and your career prospects are exciting.

Our pathway will help prepare you for a range of career possibilities, such as:

• sports coach

• teaching

• sports teacher

• nutritionist

• sports management

• marketing

• corporate position within sport

You can also choose to study for a postgraduate pathway, such as our MSc Sports Performance. In addition, our programme is structured in such a way that you will gain core skills that are transferable to a wide range of different teaching careers.

Foundation Year
Core
Human Behaviour
Research Matters
Human Science – Dissecting the details
Human Communication
Exploring Intersections
Knowledge Unleashed

Year one
Core
Introduction to Coaching
Introduction to Research in Sport
Sport in Society
Introduction to Sport and Exercise Psychology
Human Systems and Movement

Year two
Core
Coaching Pedagogy in Practice
Inclusive Practice in Sport and Physical Activity
Performance Analysis
Research Methods
Performance Monitoring and Testing
Approaches to Applied Sport and Performance Psychology

Year three
Core
Coaching Leadership
Extended Independent Work
Contemporary Issues in Sport and Physical Education
Training, Recovery & Nutrition in Sports Performance

Option Modules
Skills Acquisition
Skills in Leadership, Enterprise and Small Business

Our programme combines a theoretical and practical approach to teaching to meet your learning objectives. You will learn how to engage with the sports coaching industry in a variety of capacities at both the elite and grass-roots levels.

Assessments are a mix of coursework, including essays and reports, and practical and authentic modes of showing your knowledge, including presentations, portfolios, team projects, lab practical’s, and the production and delivery of coaching plans.

Some of the ways you will be assessed include:

essays
reports
case study analysis
presentations
reflective writing and portfolios
team projects
lab sessions
production and delivery of coaching plans